1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to an illuminated eyeglass assembly comprising one or more integral lighting assembly structured and disposed to generate an illumination region to an area immediately proximate a user, where sufficient illumination is provided to enable the user to perceptively view an item in a low light environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Eyeglasses have been utilized for a myriad of purposes throughout the years. One of the more common applications include prescription eyeglasses which many people require so as to be able to see clearly, and in more extreme cases, in order to allow a person to be able to see at all. Another common application for eyeglasses include standardized reading glasses which include lenses designed to provide a specific overall degree of magnification to objects which are viewed through them. Additionally, many people have at least one pair of sunglasses which are utilized to at least partially block the often blinding rays of the sun. Yet another common application is related to safety. For example, many manufacturing concerns require their employees and visitors to its facilities to wear glasses having safety lenses to protect their eyes from potential airborne hazards. In still another application, eyeglasses have been utilized simply as fashion or novelty items, having clear glass or plastic lenses which have no effect on the user's vision.
Eyeglasses utilized for the above purposes have been modified in various ways to incorporate some form of a lighting apparatus. There are many circumstances where an additional amount of lighting in the proximity of the user may be required. In addition, there are numerous circumstances wherein a user may need to direct light onto an object while the user's hands remain free for another activity and, in such circumstances, a lighting apparatus which a user may direct with a movement of his or her head have been developed. One such occasion is when the user is trying to view something in his or her hands in a low lighting situation such as often occurs, for example, while reading a menu or a check in a restaurant.
A number of devices have been developed which incorporate a lighting apparatus, similar to a standard penlight, attached to a standard pair of eyeglass frames in various manners. One such device simply provides a clip mechanism which is utilized to attach a standard penlight to an outer surface of one arm of a pair of eyeglasses. While this device achieves the desired result of providing a source of illumination in the proximity of the user which may be directed by the movement of the user's head, the device is bulky and awkward to wear, due to the unbalance in weight caused by the penlight, thereby requiring the user to unduly readjust the eyeglasses into an operative position. In addition, the presence of the penlight on the outer surface of the arm of the eyeglasses detracts from the overall appearance of the eyeglasses, and thus, the user. It is believed that most persons who require eyeglasses to enhance their vision prefer not to attract additional attention to the fact that they require glasses, thus, a device which further detracts from the overall appearance of a pair of eyeglasses is likely to limit the number of people who will actually utilize it.
Another device which provides lighting includes an integral clamp to attach the lighting apparatus to one arm of the eyeglasses. This again results in an unbalanced overall device, which may result in discomfort to the user. Additionally, this device includes a separate power and/or switch mechanism which is attached to the lighting apparatus by an external cord or wire which, once again, detracts from the overall appearance of the device and the user, as well as being a source of further discomfort.
In order to offset the negative aspects of the externally attached lighting mechanisms described above, a number of devices have been developed in which at least one arm of the eyeglass frame is utilized to house the lighting apparatus as well as at least a portion of its power supply and/or such switch means as is required to operate the lighting apparatus. While a number of these devices incorporate a lighting apparatus on both arms of the pair of eyeglasses, thus overcoming the balance problem identified above, they still result in a bulky and awkward appearance of the arms, which must be oversized to accommodate the lighting apparatus, the power supply, switch means, etc., and thus, the overall appearance of the eyeglasses themselves is, once again, bulky and awkward. In addition, a number of these devices include rather complex construction features which are likely to result in increased manufacturing costs, thus making such devices less accessible for widespread usage among consumers.
In addition, several of these types of devices include a power supply and switch means which are not housed on the arm of the eyeglasses, but rather are included in a separate unit which is connected to the lighting apparatus on the eyeglasses via a power cord or wire, as described above. While this reduces some of the problems related to the bulkiness of the eyeglass assembly, it creates a new problem related to mobility of the overall assembly, particularly in those devices which require an alternating current to supply power to the lighting apparatus. In addition, as noted above, the presence of a power cord or wire extending down from the eyeglasses further detracts from the overall appearance of the eyeglasses and the user, and provides a further source of discomfort.
With the advent of micro-electronic components, devices have been developed incorporating much smaller lighting apparatus in combination with eyeglasses, for example, light emitting diodes, which resolve some of the negative aspects related to the devices described above. These types of devices, however, have thus far been limited to novelty type devices. For example, one such device is structured merely to give the appearance of light emanating from the eyes of the user, while others have been developed to provide a flashing array of lights about the frame of a pair of eyeglasses, neither of which serves the useful purposes described above. Additionally, such devices, at least with respect to those employing a flashing array of lights, require additional circuitry to achieve the flashing effect which likely results in increased cost and, therefore, limits their widespread usage.
As such, it would be beneficial to provide a lightweight, comfortable, attractive, and affordable pair of eyeglasses incorporating integral lighting which is simple and economical to manufacture to allow widespread usage among persons requiring such a device. It would be preferable for such a device to incorporate an integral lighting assembly including a light source, a power source and a switch mechanism in an unobtrusive manner, i.e., the eyeglass assembly must be comfortable for a user to wear and the integral lighting assembly must not be readily apparent to other persons when not in use. Additionally, it would be helpful for such an assembly to be structured to provide an illumination region proximate a user to facilitate illumination of an item which the user is holding, such as a menu or a check, in a low light environment. Further, it would be beneficial to provide a system whereby existing eyeglasses could be readily and economically retrofitted to incorporate an integral lighting assembly.